Roof vent



Patented vMar. 31, 1942 ROO-F VENT Louis H. Hosbein, Glencoe, Ill.,assigner to Detrick Insulation Engineers, Inc., Chicago, Ill.,

a corporation of Illinois Application October 28, 1940, Serial No.363,126

(Cl. SiS- 42) 3 Claims.

This invention relates in general to roof vents, and more particularlyto improvements in such devices which adapt them for use in venting aninsulative air space provided below a roof structure.

When, in the insulation of a building, any air space is provided betweenthe roof and the in terior ceiling below the same, it has been foundnecessary to vent such insulative air space to the outer atmosphere. Theuse of any ordinary roof vent in this connection has been attendant withnumerous disadvantages. The outstanding of these is that moisture willcollect or condense interiorly of the vent, and then drain or dripdownwardly therefrom directly onto the interior ceiling, with obviousdamage resulting to the latter. As a consequence, the ordinary roofvents are entirely unt for such use. Another disadvantage of the priorart roof vents is found in their lack of durability, which results fromthe material employed therein.

A principal object of the present invention, therefore, is the provisionof a completely satisfactory roof vent for this purpose which willovercome the disadvantages of the prior art constructions.

Another important object of the invention is the provision in a roofvent of means for effectively collecting any moisture which may eithercondense in, or in any other manner find its way into, the interiorthereof.

A further important object of the invention is the provision of a roofvent which is extremely durable, while being very simple in constructionand easy to manufacture and install for use.

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparentas it is better understood from the following description, which, whentaken in connection with the accompanying drawings7 discloses apreferred embodiment thereof.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a vertical sectional view of a roof vent embodying thefeatures of the invention; and

Figures 2 and 3 are detail horizontal sections taken substantially onthe lines 2-2, and 3-3, respectively, of Fig. 1.

Referring more particularly tothe drawings, reference numeral I Iindicates in general a portion of an ordinary at type of roofconstruction which includes the usual roof boards I2, tar paper or othertype of roong paper I3, and an upper layer of tar and gravel or otherroofing boards I2 above which a roof vent, indicated generally byreference numeral I6, is mounted which embodies the features of thepresent invention.

The roof vent I6 comprises a hollow, openended main body portion I'I, acover member i8, a spacing collar I9, a moisture collecting cup member2|, and a tie bolt 22 for securing the other parts together to form aunitary assemblage.

As will be seen in Figs. l and 3, the main body portion I'I of the roofvent IS is provided adjacent its lower end with a substantially squarefiange 23 extending outwardly therefrom and formed integrally therewith.The flange 23 is adapted to be rigidly secured in any suitable manner tothe roof structure Il, as by means of nails 2li extending throughsuitable apertures 25 provided in the flange and through the boards I2of the roof structure. The nails 24 may be clinched or bent upwardly attheir lower ends, as shown in Fig. 1, or screws or other desiredfastening means may be employed. In the mounting of the roof ventI6,vthe roofing paper I3 is preferably carried over the flange 23, afterthe latter has been secured to the boards I2, and upwardly around themain body portion Il, as shown in Fig. l. The roonng material Il is thenspread around the vent` I6 to provide a leak-proof connection betweenAthe latter and the roofing paper I3. It is to be understood, of course,that the vent I6 is equally well adapted for use with any other desiredtype of roof construction, and that the mounting thereof asdisclosedherein is merely illustrative vof one manner in which the same may beaccomplished.

As shown in Fig. l, the lower end of the main body portion VI'I of thevent IE extends downwardly below the flange 23 into the aperture I5provided in the roof boards I2. The outer surface of this lower endportion of the main body member I'I is beveled, as indicated at 26, tospace the same inwardly from the walls of said aperture, for a purposeto be later more fully described. Adjacent this lower end, the main bodyportion I'I is provided interiorly thereof with inwardly extending arms2'! (Figs. 1 and 3) which are joined centrally of the body portion by ahub-like member or collar 28. The arms 2'I and collar 28 comprise aguiding web for the tie rod 22, and are preferably formed integrallywith the main body portion I1.

The cover I8 is preferably dome-shaped, as shown in Fig. 1, and isprovided with inwardly material I4. An aperture I5 is provided in the 55extending anges 29 which are formed integrally therewith. The lower endsof the flanges 29 terminate a short distance above the bottom edge ofthe cover I8, and are provided with slots or recesses 3| (Figs. 1 and 2)which engage the upper end of the main body portion I1 to properlyposition the cover thereon. With this arrangement, the cover I8 restsupon the upper end of the main body portion I1, with the lower edge ofthe former being spaced outwardly from and below the latter to provide aprotected outlet from the interior of the main body portion I1 to thesurrounding atmosphere. At its top, the cover I8 is provided with acentrally located aperture 32 through which the tie bolt 22 extends.

In addition to functioning as a guide for the tie bolt 22, the collar 28cooperates with the upper end of the collar I9 to maintain the pany 2|in desired spaced relationship relative to the lower end of the mainbody portion I1. The pan 2| is provided with a centrally disposed,circular flange 33 which extends upwardly to the same height as the sidewalls thereof and, together with the latter, defines an annular moisturere ceiving chamber 34. The flange 33 also denes a centrally locatedaperture 35 in the pan 2| through which the tie rod 22 extends. Thelower end of the collar I9 contacts the upper surface of the iiange 33to maintain the pan 2| in the proper spaced relationship to the lowerend of the main body portion I1. A suitable nut 36 is screwed onto thelower end of the tie rod 22 into tight engagement with the bottom of thepan 2|, and since the head of the tie bolt 22 is in contact with theupper surface of the cover I8, the several members I1, I8, I9 and 2| arerigidly held together in a unitary assemblage.

As will be appreciated from the above description, the pan 2| isdisposed in the insulative air space provided below the roof structureII. The vent I6 functions in the desired manner to permit flow of airfrom this insulative air space to the exterior atmosphere, as indicatedby the arrows in Fig. l. If any moisture accumulates in the interior ofthe main body portion I1, either by condensation on the inner surfacethereof, or in any other manner, it will drain downwardly to the loweredge of the main body portion and drip therefrom, as illustrated in Fig.1, into the pan 2|. The purpose of the beveled portion 26 at the lowerend of the main body member I1 is to prevent any moisture so drainingfrom the latter from coming in contact with the roof structure II, andmore particularly the inner surfaces of the aperture I in the roofboards I2, and finding its way between the latter and the ange 23. Ithas been found that' any moisture collecting in the pan 2| will beevaporated therefrom in due course. Consequently, the pan 2| functionsas a moisture collecting means which effectively prevents any damagebeing done to the lower interior ceiling structure.

The construction of the roof vent I6 as a unitary assemblage not onlygreatly facilitates its manufacture, but makes the handling andinstallation thereof a very simple matter. In order to provide anextremely durable device, the main body portion I1, the cover I8, andthe pan 2| are preferably cast of meehanite iron, although any othersuitable material may be employed. As a result, the roof vent IB will beeiectively withstand any weather or other conditions to A which it maybe subjected.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantageswill be understood from the foregoing description, and it will beapparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction andarrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention or sacricing all of its material advantages, the formhereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

I claim:

l. A roof vent, comprising a hollow, open-ended body, a cover separatefrom the body for protecting the upper end of said body while permittingthe discharge of air therefrom, means disposed below the lower end ofsaid body for collecting any moisture passing downwardly through saidbody, and means extending through said cover, body, andmoisture-collecting means for maintaining the cover, body and moisturecollecting means in spaced relation.

2. A roof vent, comprising a hollow, open-ended body, cdver means forprotecting the upper end of said body while permitting the discharge ofair therefrom, means disposed below the lower end of said body forcollecting any moisture passing downwardly through said body, meansextending through said cover means, body and moisture collecting meansfor securing the same together as a unitary assemblage, and meansdisposed between said body and said moisture collecting means tomaintain the same in spaced relationship, to each other.

3. In a roof vent, the combination of a unitary construction, comprisinga vertically disposed, hollow vent member having an outwardly extendingilange adapted to be attached to a roof structure for venting a spacetherebelow, a cover extending outwardly beyond said member and LOUIS H.HOSBEIN.

